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Jerry Colangelo (born November 20, 1939 in Chicago Heights, Illinois) is a respected American businessman and former sports mogul. He is the former majority owner of the Phoenix Suns of the NBA, the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA, the Arizona Rattlers of the Arena Football League and the Arizona Diamondbacks of Major League Baseball. He was also instrumental in the relocation of the Winnipeg Jets of the NHL to Phoenix to become the Phoenix Coyotes. Colangelo grew up in Chicago Heights, Illinois where he played basketball for Bloom Township Highschool. He graduated from the University of Illinois, where he was a member of Phi Kappa Psi Fraternity. Colangelo arrived in Phoenix in 1968, after a stint as an assistant coach of the Chicago Bulls; he was hired as the first general manager of the expansion Phoenix Suns. There, he made it clear from the start that his desire was to win an NBA championship. Colangelo lost a 1969 coin flip to the Milwaukee Bucks for the rights to UCLA phenom Lew Alcindor. But the Suns remained competitive most of the 1970s, and they almost made Colangelo's dream come true when they reached the Finals in 1976, losing to the Boston Celtics in six games. Colangelo had two stints as head coach during that decade, compiling a record of 59 wins and 60 losses. During a good portion of the 1980s, Colangelo's Suns faced trouble. Some players, including 1976 NBA Finals hero Garfield Heard, were involved in an infamous drug scandal, young center Nick Vanos perished in a 1987 plane crash, and from 1985 through 1988, the Suns failed to qualify for the playoffs. Colangelo put together a group that bought the Suns in late 1987, in the wake of the drug scandal. He subsequently made a trade for Kevin Johnson in 1987. The Suns pulled off one of the biggest turnarounds in NBA history in 1988-89, nearly doubling their win total (from 28 wins to 55) and making the first of 13 straight playoff appearances. In 1989, Colangelo was an essential part of the group that planned to build America West Arena (now US Airways Center), providing financial backing. In 1992, Colangelo traded Jeff Hornacek to the Philadelphia 76ers for Charles Barkley. The trade proved to be productive for the Suns, and they reached the NBA Finals for the second time in 1993, this time losing to the Bulls in six games. Barkley's relationship with Colangelo, however, grew sour over the years, and in 1996, he was traded to the Houston Rockets.
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